King Kobra

In 1984, Carmine Appice ended his tenure as the drummer for Ozzy Osbourne, and was left needing an outlet for his musical creativity. King Kobra was his solution: gathering four musicians who were at the time relatively unknown, he formed a new hard rock band to ensure that his name would no longer be overshadowed by that of his former employer. Featuring Mark Free on Vocals, David Michael-Phillips and Mick Sweda on Guitar, and Johnny Rod on Bass, Appice's new band released their debut album, Ready To Strike, in 1985.

Keeping the same lineup, they then went on to record another album, Thrill Of A Lifetime, which would be released through FM-Revolver. A single was also released from the album, on FM Dance, a "Street Mix" of the song Home Street Home, which added very early Hip Hop influences to the band's sound.

The band went on to release King Kobra III independently in 1988, with a largely different lineup, before the band promptly dissolved. They were then reformed in 2010, with most of the original members (only Mark Free didn't return) and put out the albums King Kobra and King Kobra II before going on an indefinite hiatus in 2013. The question of whether we'll hear new music from the band remains to be answered.